To say that I was shocked when I discovered what was beyond the forest would be an understatement.
Even after Genevieve advised me to erase any images of a conventional school from my mind, I still expected to see a large structure or something resembling a typical school but more opulent and stunning. But what I actually observed were numerous facilities, much like what you would find in urban areas.
"Welcome to the academy!" Genevieve beamed.
My jaw fell open. I have no idea where to begin my search or what to describe first. My head feels like it's about to blow at any minute due to the overload!
"Breathe, my child. We are still in the outer district, and you're already like that. I fear that you will truly have a heart attack once we arrive at the central district."
I took a few long breaths and collected myself after feeling embarrassed. But can she really blame me? I anticipated seeing a college building, not a whole city!
As we drove through the streets, I saw a few shops that sold jewelry, clothes, and other items. We even passed by what seemed to be a wet market. There are also a lot of one-story houses with identical designs. Then there was a lot of greenery—a lot of greenery. It's like everywhere I look, there is never a spot where there isn't a plant, grass, or tree!
There is a bike lane on each side of the main road, followed by a sidewalk. Evergreen shrubs separate the bike lane from the sidewalk, while red oaks separate the bike lane from the main road.
Several people can be seen here and there. Some are dressed in various uniforms, while others are dressed in everyday attire. They all appeared youthful and most likely belonged to my age range. I could count on one finger the number of elderly and middle-aged individuals I saw wandering around.
The absence of gas-powered vehicles on the main road is another thing I noted. Golf carts and what appear to be electric shuttles are all I can see. If I were to characterize this place, I'd say it's tranquil, peaceful, healthy, green, and eco-friendly. The absence of electricity lines and loud noises are the only characteristics that set it apart from a conventional city.
I could only make out one skyscraper from where we were, which I assumed to be in the city center.
I couldn't take my eyes off the skyscraper that was unmistakably modeled after the Dragon Blood Tree. If it hadn't been for its artificial-looking body, I would have thought the Academy possessed the world's tallest tree!
The ingenuity of the design is simply out of this world! If the outside world found out about this, they'd probably go wild!
"That's the Dragon Tower, known to be the architectural and engineering departments' pride. That building is about 130 meters high and has about 300 floors. The central command center is located in that building. The school's mistress and some of the teachers also live there. But what makes that tower even more awesome is the fact that only the best of the best can work and live in that place. Students we all call legendary students mostly live there."
As I turned my gaze away from the tower, a resolution bloomed in my heart. That tower will be my goal.
Ahead of us, there is a giant arc with the word 'PINE DISTRICT' written in bold letters. As we went past the sign, the smell of pine trees assaulted my nose. The evergreens changed into ferns along the sidewalk. The style of the houses and shops also changed.
"Experience is the best teacher,' is our school's anticlimactic motto. It isn't anything fancy, but it's what describes our school best."
Whoever came up with that motto is probably lazy. Forget being anticlimactic, that isn't even an original motto! I guess I'll just assume that, that person expended all his brain cells creating this place, that when he was asked to create a motto, he ran out of ideas, so he just said the first thing that came into his mind.
"You said this isn't like a normal school. So how do things work here?" I asked.
"Think of this place as a simulation of the real world. Now, what is essential for you to survive in the real world?"
"I don't know, food? Shelter? Money?"
"And what do you need in order to graduate?"
"Good grades, I guess."
She revealed, "In our school, you need to get good grades while fending for yourself in order to survive. We also use a different currency from the outside world, so whatever money you have there has no value here. Here we use copper, bronze, silver, and gold as our main currencies. It's too cumbersome to explain, you'll surely slowly learn it later on. Just know that a 50-bronze coin house can be sold for at least a million in the outside world."
I couldn't hide my shock. "Can all the freshmen here really afford to buy a house?" I muttered.
If a bronze house can be sold for a million, and if everyone, except for the few of us who got a scholarship grant, can afford it, then how rich does one need to be to be able to study here?
"Not really. Among the over 20 thousand freshmen that come each year, only about a thousand are capable of buying a house on the spot. You may not have been aware of this as a scholar. But one of the requirements for entering the academy is that you need a minimum of five bronze coins. You gain it by exchanging it for any real-world currency. Five bronze coins are made up of 2,000 copper coins. And one copper coin is worth 100 in any currency."
"Oh, so every student gets the same amount of starting money and can only buy a house as they progress?" I mused.
"You misunderstood me."
I looked confusedly in Genevieve's direction.
We just left Pine District and are currently in Narra District. The pavement is lined with lavender, and it smells lovely. The trees shifted from pine to Narra as well.
It seems like such a brilliant idea to name the district after the trees. Anytime you get lost, all you have to do is look at the tree near the main road to figure out where you are.
"I said the minimum was five bronze coins; I didn't say that was the limit. If they have the money, they are definitely allowed to buy more. And since you can only buy coins once in your entire course of studying in the academy, rich parents will surely secure more coins for their kids."
"Oh."
"Don't sound so disappointed. As I said, this place is a simulation of reality. As much as there is no true equality in the real world, the same goes here. When it comes to resources and a better lifestyle, those with money will surely get an advantage. However, even if their parents manage to buy them a gold coin, if they don't manage their wealth well, they'll surely find themselves in a very precarious situation pretty soon. This place isn't very forgiving, even to the rich. Only those who are truly worthy get to see the end. "
We took a left onto a street marked "Lily Street," which wasn't as wide as the main road. There were no stores on this street, just lines and lines of similar-looking bungalows. The customized lawns are the only things that are different. Some people set up outdoor tables, grills, garden gnomes, flowers, and other things. However, beside the sidewalk of each house, there are distinct species of lilies grown on each plot. At this time, I was neither confused nor surprised.
We pulled over to a bungalow on the left side of the road, where a lone apple tree stood proudly at the very center of the lawn. Just by looking at its leaves, the apple tree, which was about six feet tall, appeared to have been very well cared for.
"That's an apple tree I grafted during my second year here," she informed me when she saw where I was looking. "I didn't really know how to design my own lawn, and it looked so desolate with just the blue lilies by the sidewalk. So I bought a grafted apple tree and planted it in the middle. I was expecting it to bear fruit after a year or two, but it's still not showing any signs of doing so. Anyway, welcome to my home!"
I followed Genevieve inside while carrying my luggage. Though it looked small from the outside, the interior of the bungalow is fairly spacious. There's a small living room with a sofa, a coffee table, a television, and a waist-high bookshelf full of books. On the west side of the room is the kitchen, where there is a table for four. Then, there is also a sliding door that leads to a deck.
"As I said, the rich get an unfair advantage. But it isn't only the rich. Those under guardianship get advantages as well, and even better advantages at that. "For one, you get a capable senior to guide you during your entire freshman year," she said with a grin.
"How much did you pay for this place?" I asked, curious.
"2 silver coins," she answered nonchalantly. Meanwhile, my entire jaw dropped.
As she said earlier, a 50-coin house can be sold for at least a million dollars. Then this silver coin house can roughly be sold for 6 to 8 million or more!
My future is secured if I can earn that much money while studying here. Wait, if a person just works here and does not study...
"Nope, that's not going to work," Genevieve said, shaking her head as if reading my thoughts. "This may look like a city, but this is still a school. The moment you came here, your arrival was recorded in the system. From there, you have five days to enroll in your chosen course. If you fail, you will automatically get kicked out. And I'm warning you: stop thinking of ways to outsmart the system. Many have tried before you, some are well-known geniuses at that. To this date, none has ever succeeded. So, for the sake of your own future, focus on what you need to do as you study and stop thinking about useless things," she nagged and flicked my forehead.
I could only pout while holding my forehead. She appears to be very determined to act like my mother. Though I don't have a mom, I could tell that she acts like one.
"That room on the left will be your room. You go rest up first while I cook lunch. Afterwards, we'll talk some more about the rules here. It's impossible to give you a tour of this entire place. So, you might just have to figure that part out on your own."
"Okay, mom," I jokingly said. But seeing the weird glow in her eyes made me regret it. I hurriedly ran towards my room as if my life depended on it.